Love's Fool: The Taming of Lydia Bennet
by PemberleyFan
Summary: Starts after the events in Mr. Darcy's Persistent Pursuit. What happens when England's most thoughless girl marries the man most determined to reform her? Follow our headstrong anti-heroine to her marriage and her new life in Newcastle. Now a completed book available on Amazon.
1. Prelude to a War

_Love's Fool: The Taming of Lydia Bennet_

_Or_

_What Happened After Mr. Darcy's Persistent Pursuit_

_**My name is Lydia Bennet and I am imprisomed by my aunt and uncle on the second floor of 23 Gracechurch Street, Cheepside, London. I want out! I can pay you handsomly if you have me releesed. Bring the police! **_

_**Yours, etc.,**_

_**Lydia Bennet**_

_Dearest Lydia,_

_One of the servants found the attached note on the street under your window early this morning and gave it to your uncle. I must remind you that you are not imprisoned in our home; rather, your father wishes you to be here while we prepare you for your marriage and as you are under his control, summoning the police will do no good. I see that you are of a creative turn of mind. Since you have little else to entertain yourself, you might do worse than chronicling your thoughts and feelings in written form. Perhaps the self-reflection might encourage your speedy maturation and the acceptance of your future, and help you to see that your father wishes for nothing but your best. To that end, I give you this journal. Please use it well and remember that I am always_

_Your loving aunt,_

_Mrs. M. Gardiner_

_N.B. You are being moved to a room at the back of the house later today. Locking your door will do no good, for we have the only key._

_N.B. I have taken the liberty of providing the correct spelling of the following words: imprisoned, handsomely, released, Cheapside. You will have ample time to improve your education once you remove to Newcastle._


	2. Tricks and Strategems

_**Thank you so much to everyone who has commented on the very short introduction-you are too kind to comment on so little! And thank you to everyone who has already decided to follow the story. I'm feeling the pressure! This is a format I have never attempted to use for writing before so, as Mr. Fret would say, we shall see how it goes.**_

**June 2****nd**

**Gracechurch Street, London**

I am writing in this journal because there is nothing else for my entertainment in this forsaken hovel of a house where I must now live until my wedding day. That is, if I am to have a wedding day, which I will not allow unless my dear Wickham returns for me. My aunt and uncle keep me here as though I am a prisoner, and my aunt tells me that I should be grateful for their attentions!

To keep my own head straight I shall write down what has happened since Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy came to me in the boardinghouse where I was staying with Wickham. They came upon me suddenly, last Thursday evening, as I was preparing to leave my room by opening a window and crawling through it. Though I had much rather leave in the usual way, Wickham had taken the ten pounds I brought with me and left with it, saying he would be back with theater tickets and a new bonnet, but then he did not return at all. I stayed in that room for two days, watching for Wickham out the window every half hour, and then tried to leave to find him, but that awful Mrs. Younge said I could not leave for the room was not paid. Stupid woman, how could I pay for the room if I could not leave in order to find money? I really think she is not right in the head.

Thursday morning I awoke early and tried to ease my way past her door, but my valise fell and caused The Old Hag to awake, and after that she set the lock so that I could not leave.

But she is a simpleton to think such measures will work on me, for leaving my bedroom without being caught was nothing but sport for me at Longbourn. I waited until it was quite dark and began to work at the largest window in my room, in order to raise it and let myself out. The window frame was stiff, but I moved a hat-pin up and down along the length of the sill, causing the wood to loosen and move more freely. Another ten minutes and I should have been out, although now that I think of it I am not sure how I would have come off of the roof.

But then Elizabeth and that Darcy man came to the door, and I have been here ever since. This is the most hateful situation of my life, and I shall never submit to the marriage they think they have made for me. They shall soon discover how impossible it is to intimidate Miss Lydia Bennet!

**June 3****rd**

**Gracechurch Street, London**

I should not be surprised this has happened to me, for my family have never loved me as they do my older sisters. I know this because of our names: Jane Sophia Bennet, Elizabeth Marie Bennet, Mary Grace Bennet, and Catherine Anne Bennet. I am just plain Lydia Bennet. With so many girls I suppose they ran out of names by the time they got to me, and anyway I was supposed to be a boy. But it is not my fault that I am a girl! I do believe papa might have arranged things better, if he had gone to any effort.

Mr. Fret came today to meet me. He is the man they would have me marry, a disgusting old man of at least fifty years and greatly gone to fat. His red coat made him only marginally handsome, if one could overlook his crooked teeth. I see only one good thing about him—he is a soldier, and I am to be an officer's wife. I always try to display proper manners, even if I am being sadly misused, and so when he gave me a bunch of flowers I gave them a good sniff first before I dropped them on the table. That's when I started sneezing my head off, and he gave me his kerchief to use to blow my nose. He asked me if I would like to keep the kerchief and sew our initials on it after it is laundered. What a joke I will be to him as a wife, if he expects me to exhibit such domestic skills as sewing. It will almost serve him right.

I forgot to finish my story about what happened after Lizzy and that awful Darcy came and got me. Darcy had already paid for my room so The Witch decided to let me go after all, and we walked down the steps very properly and I said good by to everyone in the common room as I left, for I was a great favorite there. My aunt and uncle were waiting in a fine carriage, and they brought me back here to their house and absolutely insisted that I take a bath, for my aunt thought she saw a louse. I could have told her to save the bath for Mr. Darcy, who is the biggest louse I have ever seen! I cannot believe that my own sister would marry such a man but mama says some people think only of money.

I am sure that Wickham would have come back for me right away if he had not seen Mr. Darcy nosing around, trying to get information so he could persecute him again. And now he has chosen to take me from Wickham by making me marry Fret, who I am sure had to be persuaded with money. It must be a great deal of money, for Mr. Darcy is very rich. I wonder what I am worth to Mr. Fret, but I shall not ask.

**June 4****th**

**Gracechurch Street, London**

I am worth five thousand pounds. Mr. Fret told me today, for I asked him. I told him he is getting a grand bargain, for he should count himself lucky to be marrying me at all. He just looked at me and I could not read anything on his face, and then papa sighed and told him he could have my share of the settlement on me and my sisters, which comes to one hundred pounds per annum. I think Fret should have held out for more. If papa can afford five thousand pounds then he can certainly afford a few hundred a year. Fret is not a very observant man.

**June 5****th**

**Gracechurch Street, London**

Elizabeth has married The Louse. They married three days ago but my aunt just now thought to mention it. They did not let me go to the wedding because my aunt says it is not proper for me to be out in public. She is ridiculous. I did nothing that many others have not done, and less than some, for Wickham and I did nothing to catch a baby the way other girls do. But aunt did not ask me that and I shall not tell her.

**June 8****th**

**Gracechurch Street, London**

Uncle Gardiner told me today that Wickham is not coming back for me, ever. That he cannot come back, for he is on a boat to the Americas. That after Wickham left me at The Old Hag's boardinghouse, he was observed by some of his creditors and handed over to the police, and they threw him in The Clink for his debts.

There! I always knew Wickham would have come back for me if he could!

Mr. Darcy got him released from prison so that he could be flogged, and now he will have to live out the rest of his life in a country not of his birth. The flogging was for running away from the militia, not for his debts. The hateful man, I shouldn't be surprised if The Louse flogged him personally. He has had quite a Vendetta against Wickham his whole life. I hope America is far enough away that Wickham will never have to suffer such persecution again.

**June 12****th**

**Gracechurch Street, London**

Fret came to see me again today. I smiled my prettiest smile for him and he surprised me by smiling back. He has not usually smiled at me and so I knew my plan was working. I told him that I have been lonely and bored here in my Uncle Gardiner's house, and would he not enjoy some company on the town? And since tomorrow is the Lord's day, he could start by escorting me to services, and then the next day perhaps we could take in a theater show. I thought this was very clever of me, for who can fault me for wishing to go to services? He smiled again and said he was glad I was taking an interest in my Spiritual State.

Once we are inside the church, it will be nothing for me to slip away in the crowd and leave the building, and poor Fret shall never find me again. I shall go to the docks immediately and board a boat for the Americas, and I shall never see this house again! I am not exactly certain how long it takes to get to America, but I know that if I smile at the right gentleman on the boat, being allowed to continue on will not be a problem. A pretty face opens many doors, I have learnt.

Fret has promised to call on me at ten o' clock tomorrow morning. By this time tomorrow night I shall be a free woman once again. I cannot wait to see my dear Wickham.

**June 13****th**

**Gracechurch Street, London**

FRET IS THE MOST ODIOUS MAN IN ALL OF ENGLAND.

14 June, S- Street

_Dear Miss Lydia,_

_I am truly sorry to have offended you with my gift. When you said you wished to attend services with me yesterday I could not bear to disappoint you, yet your uncle and aunt have forbidden you to leave the house even for such a noble purpose as enriching your soul. I had no idea a volume of Fordyce's Sermons would elicit such a strong reaction in you, when it would appear to assist you in reaching your spiritual goals. You left the room so quickly that I had not the opportunity to discover why this was objectionable. Perhaps you disliked the binding?_

_The offending volume has been removed from the house. After this I shall inquire with you first to see if my gifts are acceptable._

_Yours truly,_

_Jonathan Fret_

_N.B. You may wish to consider less transparent ways to try to escape your uncle's control. You would have been caught immediately._

_N.B. If you ever hit me over the head with a book again, I shall hit you back._

**Field Journal of Jonathon Fret, Captain**

**His Majesty's Army, 7****th**** Division**

**14 June, London**

The contract has been signed and the banns have already been read, and in three week's time I shall be a married man. If I were to procure a license, I could be wed much more quickly, but I am a parsimonious man, not given to unnecessary spending, and hope that my wife will follow my example.

My purposes in marrying are threefold: one, for the companionship and domestic comforts offered in such an arrangement; two, for the procreation of an heir; three, for the deep affection that will probably (may perhaps) arise between two people so closely associated in such intimate ways.

As a member of His Majesty's Army for the past seven years, I am accustomed to think in military terms, and therefore I define here my objectives, strategies and tactics.

Primary Objective: to marry Miss Lydia Bennet in accordance with the contract now signed.

Barriers to Objective: Miss Lydia Bennet

Strategies to enlist: Concentration of Forces, Shock and Surprise, and Deliberate Limitation of Information

Secondary Objective: We shall see how it goes.

Likelihood of Success: We shall see how it goes.

_**This book has now been published on Amazon as Love's Fool: The Taming of Lydia Bennet**_

**_Author's Note: Thank you so much to everyone in the Fanfic community for your support and encouragement as I wrote this story and its prequel. Both books have had remarkably good sales, each ranking within the top ten for their category, and much of that is due to your helpful comments and feedback during the writing process. I would like to encourage aspiring authors here to consider publishing their work via Amazon or another site. I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have about the process. There's plenty of room for all of us to succeed!_**

**_I have started to work on my next story. I plan on writing it here first and letting all of you take first crack at it again. See you in the new year!_**


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